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Today, is the first day of the World Congress of Basque Communities Abroad that is being held through Friday at the Montehermoso Palace in Vitoria-Gasteiz.  The day will begin with a welcome from the Basque Government’s Secretary General of Foreign Affairs, Marian Elorza, after which Lehendakari Urkullu will officially open the proceedings and them will give the floor to Kingsley Aikins, an Irish expert on Diaspora and director and consultant of Diaspora Matter, who will give the keynote speech. 

Vitoria-Gasteiz.   Everything is ready at the Montehermoso Palace in Vitoria-Gasteiz to open the 6th World Congress of Basque Communities.  A large number of the delegates who arrived from abroad spent yesterday visiting Gernika, Bilbao as well as spending yesterday afternoon at the Basque Parliament.  Meanwhile, those who still hadn’t arrived came throughout the day from several countries.  Around 9pm, the delegates and others present had a pre-congress dinner where they received the first informal welcome from Marian Elorza, Secretary General of Foreign Affairs, and Asier Vallejo, the Director of the Basque Community Abroad.

There is a total of 25 countries who have a Basque presence organized around one or more Euskal Etxeas, 22 of which will attend the congress with a total of 59 delegates who will have a vote.  To these, 15 participants from this year’s Gaztemundu program will also be present, four gusts of the Lehendakari including Hugo Andiazabal, president of FEVA, that Argentine federation of Basque clubs; his colleague from the US, Valerie Arrechea, president of NABO, members of the Lehendakari’s Advisory Council regarding Basque Communities; delegates of the various Basque Government Delegations around the world and a large number of people related to the Diaspora accredited to attend the Congress as listeners, 170 people in all.

Here is today’s program:

Wednesday October 7

08:15 Approval of Congress attendees

09:00 Welcome by the Secretary General for Foreign Affairs, Marian Elorza

09:10 Opening of the Congress by the Lehendakari, Iñigo Urkullu

09:20 Keynote speech by Kingsley Aikins, CEO of “Diaspora Matters”

10:00 Coffee break

10:30 Report on emigration of Basque youth (Itsaso Andueza, president of the Basque Youth Council)

10:50 Today’s Basque emigration as seen by young university students (Rosa Arburua, Donostia teaching college, UPV/EHU)

11:10 Debate on generational change-over

12:10 Presentation of the “eLiburutegia” project (Imanol Agote, director for cultural heritage in the Basque government)

12:30 Trans-oceanic relations from the 15th century to the present day (Xabier Agote, president of the “Albaola” foundation for Basque maritime heritage)

12:50 Round table on the future of the Euskal Etxeak: cultural and education programs and their dissemination

14:00 Lunch

15:30 Round table on opening up the Euskal Etxeak: cooperation with other Diasporas and opening up to society

RESEARCH IN PROGRESS:

16:30 Basque congresses in Argentina (Magdalena Mignaburu, Josu Legarreta)

17:00 “Ekin” publishers of Buenos Aires and “Euskal Erria” publishers of Montevideo (María Elena Etcheverry de Irujo, Xabier Irujo, Alberto Irigoyen)

17:30 Research project on the Basque center in Caracas and Basque exile in Venezuela (Xabier Irujo, Alberto Irigoyen)

         18:00 40th anniversary of the first Boise-Oñati exchange (Iñaki Galdos)